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Seven days in medicine: 28 February to 6 March

Public attitudes

Satisfaction with NHS hits new low

The public’s satisfaction with the NHS fell by six percentage points last year to 57%, the lowest since 2011, the British Social Attitudes survey has shown. At the same time, dissatisfaction grew to 29%, up from 22% in 2016. Dissatisfaction was driven largely by concerns over staff shortages, long waiting times, lack of funding, and government reforms. Satisfaction with GP services also slumped in 2017 to 65%, down from 72% in 2016, and the lowest rating since the survey began in 1983. (Full story doi:10.1136/bmj.k943)

Acute care

Emergency admissions rose 24% in past decade

The National Audit Office found that emergency admissions to hospitals in England rose by 24% in the past 10 years, from 4.69 million in 2007-08 to 5.82 million in 2016-17. The average annual cost of dealing with such admissions was £13.7bn in 2015-16, around 10% of the entire annual NHS budget. The watchdog also reported a 12% rise in emergency admissions of people aged 65 or older in the past four years. (Full story doi:10.1136/bmj.k1022)

Public health

NHS should help cut pollution, says CMO

England’s chief medical officer has urged the NHS to act as an example to the rest of the country by reducing its pollutant footprint. “We all know …